A Child's Play Thing
by Hahligirl56
Summary: This takes place about 2 weeks after the end of the film, in the new 'Syspocalypsestar' world, where everyone is trying to rebuild their lives. Emmet continues having strange dreams, mostly with himself as Rex under the Dryar. Could Reality be having a hold on him despite everything – or are there more time-travel shenanigans in store?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: "It's the least I can do."**

* * *

It was a brand new day in Syspocalypsestar, the brand new city that once made up Apocolypseburg and the Systar System and now joined together. The world was new, and new friends were ready to be made, after all the conflict that had occurred over the past five years.

On this particular day, Emmet Brickowski opened his eyes as the sun began to rise. A smile automatically mapped upon his face as he was reminded where he was: In his new yellow house, in a comfortable bed, with his 'Special Best Friend' Lucy sleeping beside him. He hopped out of bed and did his morning stretches and breathing, quietly so as not to wake Lucy up…yet. She was still slumbering, not aware at all that a new day had just begun. Emmet figured that she was a night owl; she'd had to be one during their day-to-day lives in Apocolypseburg, never knowing when calamity might strike and their way of life wrecked.

Little did they know that they never needed to have feared the visitors from the Systar System after all! They had simply wanted to bond with them, play with them, and enter their lives as friends. Now, they were capable of doing that, and much more, in the new world they had both created. This was encapsulated by the marriage between their very own Batman and Queen Watevra Wa'Nabi, the ruler of the Systar System.

Emmet got dressed in his regular orange construction worker outfit, quietly as he could so that he would not wake Lucy up. He had gotten the idea recently of trying to surprise her one morning with a special breakfast just for the two of them, and decided that this morning was the perfect day to carry that out.

He already knew what he wanted to make for the both of them – two eggs (sunny-side up), bacon, and toast…the quintessential breakfast! He grinned as he set to work, carefully removing the ingredients from the refrigerator and setting each one aside. He grabbed a recipe from where he would normally placed the instructions in the new house – although he knew this routine by heart, it still made him feel at ease reading the instructions step-by-step, so as to have the perfect meal ready.

"Okay…'Step 1'" he whispered, reading the recipe from the top. He heard Lucy moan, and eyed her tossing from one side to the other, still fast asleep. He sighed a breath of relief; he really didn't want this surprise to be put on hold another day, not when he was so close to getting started with everything. "'Step 1, place the frying pan on top of the stove.'" He did so. "'Put some oil in the pan'." Check. "'Turn the stove on'." He turned the knob for the stove so that it could begin to heat. "'Crack the eggs in the pan and let them cook'." He placed four eggs aside – two for her and two for him. He carefully cracked them open one at a time, slowly so that he would not accidentally break the yolk either.

He cut six slices of bacon while the eggs were prepping, quietly hoping that the eggs would not take too long to finish. Once they were done, he slid the eggs down onto two different plates – again, one for her and one for him, while he placed the strips of bacon on the same pan where the eggs had been. While letting the eggs cool and the bacon cook, Emmet went ahead to start preparing the toast, taking care to put two full slices of bread that he would later cut into four separate pieces.

He grinned as his breakfast was coming together just the way he had wanted it to. The final steps in the instructions were to place the meal at the location where they wanted to eat, and accompany it with drinks. Normally on Emmet's morning run, both Lucy and himself would have purchased overpriced coffee, and Emmet had thought before of maybe just going ahead and ordering for the both of them for this occasion. For the sake of time, though, Emmet decided to have the option of either orange juice or milk to go with their meal.

With everything just about ready, Emmet placed everything at the breakfast table, ready to serve. The aroma of what he had just cooked filled the air, which made him hungrier than he already was. He scanned the table. Everything looked just about perfect…except for one last, small detail.

* * *

Lucy opened up her eyes, her nostrils filled with the warm scent of fresh food made from scratch…and it was nearby. She rose up in the bed and stretched her arms, yawning as she did so. It was late in the morning now, and Emmet by now had already made his morning runs, she was sure of that. She leaped out of bed, and followed the smell to where the breakfast table lay, and there she saw…

Two plates with eggs, bacon and toast ready to be eaten, jugs and cups for milk or orange juice…and a vase of yellow daffodils making up the centerfold, giving the entire spread a sweet, homey image.

"Gooooood morning, Lucy!" Emmet's chipper voice popped up behind her, and she turned to meet his eager grin; it seemed as though he had been waiting for this moment for some time and had been in hiding until the moment she woke up.

"Emmet! Did you do this?" Her mouth was slightly agape; it seemed as though Emmet's surprise was a surprise after all!

"Yup! This was a present I cooked up for you – pun intended." He winked at her, hoping she appreciated the little joke. She responded with a small chuckle. "It's an everyday-one-of-a-kind-Special-Best-Friends-breakfast-brunch!" He took ahold of her hands and led her closer to the table. "See? Sunny-side up eggs, bacon, toast, and your choice of beverage – milk or orange juice!"

"This is great, Em! Thank you."

Emmet gently pulled out one of the seats for Lucy, which she obliged by taking it. He took the opposite chair and sat across from her, grinning with anticipatory excitement.

"What about the waffles? I thought when we had this originally built you had an entire area of the house just for making and eating waffles?"

Emmet stared blankly at her, while letting her words sink in. He then grinned and chuckled, relaxing a bit. "I actually forgot all about that room! I didn't know you rebuilt that part – I got the impression you thought it was kind of useless."

"No, I remade everything _exactly_ the way you built it first." She smiled gently at him. "It was the least I could do for you," she continued, a bit more softly this time.

Emmet reciprocated the smile, and stood up. "Well…I better go down and get some waffles to share with.

Lucy stood up as well. "Don't be silly – it was my fault for not telling you in the first place. Besides, you already went through all of this trouble making this for me…uh, _us_. Let me go down and get some for you."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely." She walked over to his side, and planted a soft but quick peck on his cheek. "See you in just a bit."

Emmet blushed; he had not expected the sudden show of affection Lucy had just given him, but he was pleased by it all the same. _She liked what you did_, he thought to himself. _It's the least you could do for her_.

It didn't seem right to go ahead and eat with Lucy not here…even if the food was starting to get a bit cold. Emmet took the time to gather his thoughts together, about where they were at this point in their lives. Everything was so different now than it had been several weeks ago…it really was like everyone was starting over. He looked down at his eggs. _It would be awesome_, he thought, _if every morning could start like this_. _Me and Lucy, eating together, hanging out…going out into the city together with our friends, going on new adventures_.

Indeed, life had been just like that for the past two weeks – the new world was expanding and everyone was taking advantage of this fresh, new start that had been given to them. It was hard to think that everything in the future wouldn't be awesome. Things were better than ever before; even President Business was in on the new celebratory atmosphere once he returned from his ill-fated golf game. In fact, he had been so inconsolable the first few days after his return, that Emmet, Lucy, and the others were unsure just how to approach him, much less comfort him. Still, once he was able to get over this slight against his particular skills, President Business had served as a great mediator and motivator, and helped promote harmony between the two factions of what made up their new world. It was helped all the more by Batman's new marriage with Queen Watevra Wa'Nabi. Emmet and Lucy hadn't seen much of their dark, masked friend since those events that brought them together, but according to Sweet Mayhem (the queen's second-in-command) they were still very much in love and enjoying one another's company.

_Just like us_, Emmet thought, regarding himself and Lucy.

Lucy popped back into the kitchen, holding two large waffles, fresh and ready to be eaten. Emmet leaped up suddenly to fetch syrup – they were just about ready to dig in!

Everything was set on the table, a bit cool by this point in time, but that didn't really matter much to Emmet when you were in good company…the _best_ company. With a nod and a grin, the two began to dig into the Surprise Breakfast, and chatted about what their plans were going to be for that day. Whatever they were, they were going to be…_awesome_.

* * *

Emmet and Lucy walked out of their home together after finishing their breakfast together. "You ready?" Lucy grinned at Emmet. Now that the war with the Systar System was finally over, that left everyone to pick up the pieces…and finding new purpose. There was fun and awesomeness to be had, but work to do as well to help rebuild bridges and reconnect with one another. Emmet and Lucy decided to use their respective talents to do just that.

Emmet, with his skill as a construction worker and with his talent for following instructions and making sure everything and everyone was safe, was tasked with helping build new homes and neighborhoods for the Systarans and the Apocalypseburgians to live together harmoniously.

Lucy, with her natural leadership and strong communication skills would work close to him, mending the fractured relationships that had been affected by the five-year war.

Things so far were off to an excellent start – everyone was excited to be able to put the past behind them, and start anew again. With teamwork, Emmet, Lucy, and the others were building their new world up again to bigger and greater heights than had ever been achieved previously. Everyone knew their purpose and what ways they could help one another. The future, at last, seemed brighter indeed.

* * *

That night, as everyone turned in for the night, Emmet and Lucy spent time in their new, humble abode discussing how awesome their day had been, and what they were most looking forward to tomorrow.

Emmet complimented Lucy on the way she had skillfully helped out some of the Duplo aliens who had just arrived in Syspocalypsestar from one of the Queen's other planets, and were not sure where to go as far as finding a place to rest after their long journey.

Lucy likewise complimented Emmet on his Surprise Breakfast for them this morning, and how she had liked how diverse and colorful the housing complexes were after he had completed building them. "All in a day's work for a Master Builder," he playfully bragged. She giggled, pleased at both of their results of their hard work.

They were ready to turn in for the night; Lucy shut the blinders around the house and cleaned up while Emmet readied their bed. Another day had come and gone for them, and a lot of progress had been made.

"Ready for another _awesome_ day tomorrow?" Emmet asked Lucy as she came to her side of the bed.

"You know it!" Lucy replied with a cheerful grin. "_Everything's better when we stick together_," she sang as she hopped under her covers.

Emmet did likewise. "I cannot _believe_ that you were one of the lead singers of _Everything Is Awesome_!"

She blushed a little. "It was a different time in my life…but it was a fun time. And it really is a great song. I'm proud I did it then, and…I'm sorry I made it seem like I hated it whenever you brought it up. You really enjoy that song as much as we did."

Emmet could feel himself drifting off to sleep, but he couldn't help but ask Lucy one more thing before he did. "So…why did you color your hair black and decide to try to be tough and dark all that time ago?"

Lucy's eyelids were slowly closing as well. "I'll tell you about it…one of these days…"

The two stopped talking and let rest overtake them. Tomorrow would be another day to do it all again, and more adventures would be in store for them.

* * *

_For Emmet, everything was pitch black. What's more was that he was conscious but couldn't move. It was as if his body was glued to the floor. He had no feeling of his limbs, no control or will to shift, he was just…still. _

_He stared ahead into the darkness. Darkness…that's all that there was. Even more, it was silent, as if he were the only being in existence. _

_"__Hello?" He tried to shout. No sound came out – it was as if his voice was trapped in his head with no way out. He tried again. "Is anyone out there?" Again, no response. This deafening silence continued for some time. Minutes…hours…days…months…it seemed endless. It's almost…maddening. _

_Suddenly, he noticed a soft light in the distance. At last, a change. "Hello?" he called out again. Still, the words would not verbalize and instead remained trapped in his mind. The light, on the other hand, expanded, becoming bigger and brighter. Closer…_

_Emmet saw images moving in the brightness. Dancing. Celebrating. He heard laughter and cheers. The images become clearer and clearer…until at last he could recognize them._

_Benny…Unikitty…Metal Beard…Batman…_

_Lucy…_

_They were so close, and yet so far from him. Couldn't they see him if he could see them? _

_"__Guys? Hello?" Emmet expected one of them to turn around at the sound of his voice, to spot him lying in the darkness. He expected them to come up to him, help him up, and take him away back home. _

_They did nothing of the sort. Emmet almost felt invisible, gone in the eyes of his friends and the world they exist in. Instead, he was trapped in silence, stillness, and darkness._

_No one notices him. No one notices his cries for help, no matter how many times he pleads, or how loudly he screams…the sounds never came out. The cheers he heard from far away are only muffled somewhat by the loud tumbles of the invisible winds above him. Dust mites formed around him, growing as the time passed by. Strange creatures crept by, sometimes climbing over him as if he were only one more hurdle for them._

_A small pit of grief starts to gnaw at his soul. He is alone, forgotten to the world he once thought he belonged in. It would have been better if he never saw that bright light in the first place…not if it meant he knew he would still have to be stuck here, in the dark, alone…forever._

* * *

Emmet woke up gasping, his heart racing. It was almost as if his lungs had forgotten to breathe. It took a few minutes to calm himself down and clear his head of what he had just dreamt. The sun had still not risen yet, so most everyone was still asleep…including Lucy. Luckily, his scare had not woken her up.

After he felt himself relaxing again, he thought about the dream he had just had, if he could even call it that. It was too horrible, more like a nightmare. It was too…_Real_. He shuddered involuntarily as the memory of the nightmare came back. He tried to remember where he had last seen that dark prison where he had been left behind. It was disturbing how familiar that situation felt to him…when he remembered that he recently had been in that situation. The Undar the Dryar System. Alone…except for Rex.

_Rex_…Emmet blinked several times as he recalled his future self, his mentor, his savior…and his enemy. Until those last few moments of his life, when he told Emmet he was proud of him for remaining true to who he was. Rex had been the one who had suffered those agonizingly long years, being still and silent, lost in the darkness, away from his friends. _Abandoned_, he had told Emmet. It was no wonder why he turned dark and bitter, just like the environment around him.

Emmet had been under the Dryar himself, but only for the few hours that Rex had sent him there. What was that to what Rex went through?

Emmet was confused; he hadn't gone through those events himself…but _Rex_ had. Down to watching his friends partying and celebrating, and himself trying to call out for them. And yet, though Emmet had dreamed it himself, he felt as though he had actually _lived_ through it, in the plastic.

This perplexed him, and a new thought entered that made him start to worry – what if it was _more_ than just a dream?

* * *

A/N: Woo-hoo! A spur-of-the-moment story! I hope you guys enjoyed this little chapter for what it was: A set-up. I have the first three chapters outlined, but I'm hoping to ballpark around 10 chapters - not a long story, but hopefully an enjoyable one. Let me know if you have any questions, comments, etc. - I hope you enjoy this ride. :)


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Lost and Found**

Lucy woke up late the next morning, long after the sun had risen – the consequence of being a chronic night-owl. Her side of the bed was empty, again. After rising and looking around the area, however, she found that Emmet was missing. She peeked inside the breakfast area where they had had their Special Breakfast. Empty. The daffodils were still sitting in their container in the middle; Emmet had evidently forgotten to throw them out. _Or maybe he didn't want to end any signs of yesterday's Specialness_, Lucy thought. _He's sweet like that_. Indeed, yesterday had been a _very_ special day – their best in a long time. Was Emmet trying to one-up his plans from yesterday for an even bigger surprise somewhere?

Lucy slowly crossed over to the other various parts of the house: The TV room, Living Room, Planty's Room, Kitty Room…all the rooms Emmet's imagination and skill as a Master Builder put to use were up…and empty. Her friend was nowhere to be found, not even out in the back where their special swing-set was.

_That's strange_...she thought, confused by his absence. _Normally, he waits for me before we start the day together. But he's not here. Anywhere._ She walked to the door, grasped the handle, and looked back once more on their empty home before heading out. _Maybe he's already at the building site_. _He worked so hard yesterday that he probably just wants to go back and make sure everything is up to snuff._

Lucy started sprinting down their hill to the city below, looking left and right at every angle for any glimpse of Emmet's familiar orange construction vest. Soon she was right in the heart of Syspocalypsestar, with its citizens hustling and bustling past each other, laughing and playing without a care in the world.

The only one who _did_ have a care right now was Lucy. She was starting to worry – her friend had just disappeared all of a sudden, with no note or any hint of where he had gone.

She ran to the newest construction site area where Emmet's coworkers and other volunteers were putting up the latest buildings in their expansion project. She took a quick glimpse; she could see many construction workers hard at work, but still no sign of Emmet. Although he was described as generic and ordinary, she'd come to know him well enough so that even he could stick out in a crowd to her.

_He's not here either_, she thought in dismay. She started to run past the site before stopping in her tracks and turning around. _It won't hurt just at ask. Maybe they saw him somewhere earlier. _

She looked for the nearest person to call to, hoping they would have more information. She spotted a female construction worker near the bottom floor of one of the newer skyscrapers that had been completed. Lucy struggled to remember her name – Emmet had told her all about his team that he had worked with back before the incident with the Kragle had happened, and knew everyone by name and what they enjoyed (even if they didn't really know him that well in return).

_Gail! That was her name! I think…_ Honestly, it had been a while since she had seen many of the construction workers. Many of them had taken darker personas once the war with the Duplo aliens had begun, and Emmet mostly stuck close by to her and their close friends rather than return to his team. Once peace had been restored, however, he had jumped at the chance to help rebuild in any way that he could, and was ecstatic to work with his old team again…even if they hadn't noticed his absence much in the past five years. Emmet had been deemed '_The Special_'…but it really seemed to Lucy that Emmet was special to _her_.

"Hey! Are you Gail?" Lucy yelled out for her attention, still standing near the entrance gate of the complex.

The female construction turned around. "Who's asking?" she called back.

"I'm looking for Emmet! Emmet Brickowski?"

Gail's features turned perplexed and she gave her a shrug.

"The Special?" Lucy tried again. Still no sign of recognition. "He's a construction worker who's been helping out here! I'm trying to find him!"

Gail looked upwards, hailing for the attention of another construction worker. "Hey Frank! This gal she's looking for someone named Emmet? Know someone like that?"

The construction worker peered down at his colleague – this one had a scruffy beard and seemed to be the one in charge. "Who?"

"Emmet? She says she's looking for someone named Emmet? Do we know someone like that?"

"Emmet?" Frank asked, also confused. He lifted his helmet up to scratch his head. "Emmet…" he mumbled.

Lucy's heart sank. All of Emmet's efforts as The Special during their struggle with President Business…his well-meaning but ultimately-unnecessary rescue for Lucy and their other friends that had been taken by Sweet Mayhem…had none of it really mattered to anyone? Did Emmet really not matter to anyone…aside from herself?

She was pulled out of her head when she heard Frank's voice again. "…Is he that guy that went on that crazy space-cadet mission a few weeks back?"

"It wasn't a space-cadet mission!" Lucy shot back. "He went to rescue us!" _Even though we didn't actually really _need_ rescuing after all_…she thought more somberly.

"…Yeah, Frank, I think you're right," Gail replied after Lucy's outburst. "I remember him. Young guy, too peppy, even in this part of town." She put her hand on her chin. "Except this morning…" she said more quietly.

Lucy heard the morning part, even from her distance. "This morning?" she repeated.

"Yeah, he walked past here this morning. Didn't look like he was clocking in today – he seemed to have a lot on his mind." Gail frowned and looked down the route at the other facades. "Shame for that – we could have used the extra hands today."

"Do you know where he went?" Lucy called back for her attention.

"He was heading down past the city, down the clear area…no buildings down there. Nothing but an empty field."

Lucy's heart stopped in her chest. "…I think I know the place you mean," she replied quietly.

"What'd you say?"

"Nothing. Thanks for your time – I'll go and find him!" Lucy answered before running down the direction Gail had pointed out and disappeared from her view.

* * *

Lucy found Emmet sitting on the grassy hill, overlooking the scenery below. He was so lost in thought that he didn't even hear her coming up behind him. "Emmet! There you are!"

Emmet turned his head around, surprised. "Lucy?"

"I've been looking everywhere for you! Are you okay?" She sat down next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder, her expression one of concern. "When I woke up, you weren't in any of the other rooms in the house. I thought you went on ahead…maybe to work, or to get a coffee…but some of the construction guys told me you were out here." She peered down where he had been gazing all this time. "What are you doing way out here anyway?"

Emmet's face remained neutral, something which set alarm bells in Lucy's head. This was not like him…not at _all_.

He pointed his hand down to the valley below. "That's where it happened. Where all this began." His other hand waved around them. "That's where you saved me."

Lucy remembered. _The Dryar System_…That was where Rex had exiled Emmet, to live out his years banished from everyone he had ever known or loved…all so that Rex could prove his point, and Emmet would end up becoming him. Lucy shuddered involuntarily, trying to imagine what it must have felt like. She had come to save him, right when Rex was attempting to break Emmet…both his body, and his soul.

"I did. But _you_ ended up saving _me_ first, Emmet." She pulled his head to gaze into her eyes, looking at him seriously. It was important to make this point, especially after her brief chat with the other construction workers. "I want you to remember that. You taught me not to be so hard of a person, and to like myself for who I am. That it was okay to laugh, and have fun, and not be so serious and broody all the time." She exhaled. "So…really…it's all thanks to you."

She hoped that would cheer him…but Emmet remained quiet, and almost…depressed. "I had a nightmare last night," he finally spoke up, so quietly that she could barely hear him.

She was quiet for a moment. She felt so badly for him that she wanted to hug him – there was no need for nightmares in this new life of theirs. What was the problem?

"What happened in it?" she asked him in kind. She wanted to pay attention – the last time he had dreamed something so intense, it had ended up coming true, and their almost ignoring it almost led them all to ruin.

Emmet exhaled. "Well, it's…hard to say," he began. "It just felt so…real. I was in darkness…like under the Dryar. And I couldn't move, either, just like there. I was just lying there, for a long, long time. It felt like ages. Nothing was happening. I didn't even know if I was awake or asleep. I tried to yell out for help, but nothing came out of my mouth."

Lucy listened quietly. This, too, felt familiar to her as she had experienced something like that quite recently.

"Finally, after what seemed like forever, I saw a small light. It slowly got bigger…and then I saw…I saw all you guys. You, Batman, Metal Beard, Benny, Unikitty…all of our friends were dancing, and having fun with the Systarans, and partying…having a great time."

Emmet was silent for a longer moment. "…I wanted to be part of it, too," he whispered. Lucy sat uncomfortably next to him. "I tried yelling out again, calling for you guys to notice me, to know that I saw you guys…nothing came out. I couldn't move…I couldn't talk…I could only watch." _And scream in my head_, he finished to himself.

They sat in silence next to each other for several more minutes. Lucy finally broke the silence. "Emmet…I don't know what to say. Really. That's just horrible. You're right…that _is_ a nightmare." Her hand reached down to his leg, patting it, in a futile attempt to comfort him. "But you just have to remember…it was just a dream. You're _here_ now, with _us_." She couldn't help herself any longer. She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed, hoping that her touch would help to make him forget. "You're never going to be alone like that. Promise."

"You never came back for me. "

Lucy let go, her heart skipping a beat. "_What_?" she whispered.

Emmet shook his head. "I mean…not _you_, you. But _his_ Lucy…Rex's."

"…Oh."

"She never went back for him. None of them did." He finally stood up, but his gaze still peered over to the distance. "…Do you think they forgot about him?"

Lucy stood up alongside to him. "Now, how could anyone forget _you_?" She offered him a small smile. "You're kind…thoughtful, caring. Sweet. Anyone would be _bananas_ to forget someone like you."

Emmet finally reciprocated her small smile. "Thanks, Lucy," he whispered. "You're right…it was just a dream." _Even though it felt like it was_ _Real_, he still thought to himself.

Emmet placed his hand in Lucy's and together they started to make the walk back to town, putting the valley where the Dryar System laid behind, forgotten.

* * *

As Emmet slowly began to act more like his old self, Lucy became quieter and mostly listened…while also planning something in her head. She really wanted to make Emmet feel better, to put the past behind him, and look ahead to the future. More than that, she wanted to show that he was appreciated and valuable to the community…and to her as well.

She was inspired by yesterday's Surprise breakfast – it had gone so well and so smoothly, and she had so enjoyed it, that Lucy decided it was time to return the favor.

"Hey…stop for just a moment." She held both of his hands. "What if we…throw a Special party tomorrow?"

"A party?"

"Yeah! All our friends could be there. It'd be a great way to get the community together. What do you think?"

Emmet smiled – his first true smile for that day. "I really like the sound of that."

"You do?" Lucy sounded a bit more excited than she had meant to. Really, what she was concocting was a Special party…just for Emmet. It would be _her_ surprise for him.

"Yeah! Tomorrow you said?"

"Yes!" Lucy looked at the city clock. It was already late in the afternoon – her search for Emmet and their quiet reflection on the hill had taken longer than she thought it would. "Ack! It's late! There's things I gotta take care of first!" She tried to sprint off, before remembering Emmet was still holding (and tugging) her hand.

"I'll help!" he offered.

"Uh…great! Actually, you should _really_ make your way to the construction site. Gail and Frank said that they were worried when you wouldn't work today."

"…They did? Really?"

"Yup! I'd go see if they need anything they need any help with. Hey, you could even tell them about the party – maybe see if they're interested in coming?"

"You mean you want me to spread the word?"

"Great idea, Emmet! You spread the word, and I'll go ahead and start planning everything out."

"Awesome!" Emmet gave Lucy a vibrant high five.

"Teamwork!" she returned. "I've got to go get started. I'll meet you later back at the house, okay?"

"Sounds great! See you later, alligator!"

Lucy chuckled. She hated goodbyes, but this was more of a 'see-you-in-a-bit' parting than a final farewell. "After a while, crocodile!"

"What?"

"That's just something else I picked up. Later, Emmet!" She dashed before he had time to come back with another reply.

Although she had described the party as more of a town celebration their new lives together…she really wanted the message sent across that the party would be a means of celebrating _Emmet_.

_And I know the perfect people to ask to help me make this the best party for him!_

She was excited…but also terrified. Emmet's description of his nightmare was very vivid, just like his vision for Our-mom-agedon had been. What if this nightmare came true as well? And why was Emmet having all of these strange dreams all of a sudden in the first place?

More importantly…why was all of this drawing Emmet back to Rex, in some shape or form? Rex was _gone_ – Back-to-the-Future'd; he'd coin the phrase himself while he was disappearing, his time-stream erased when Lucy came to rescue Emmet.

_He still has a way of keeping us apart_, she thought, annoyed. What Emmet did ask _did_ worry her though…why hadn't Rex's Lucy gone back to find him in his time-stream? Before it was too late? Before he'd changed and grown bitter? She wondered if she would ever really know the answer.

* * *

A/N: So, originally this chapter was going to be longer, but my page count was in the double digits, so I'm going to split this one into two parts. What kind of party do you think Lucy will try to throw for Emmet? Will she be able to cheer him up at all? And what about about that strange nightmare that keeps bothering him? Hmmm...

I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Let me know any comments, questions, concerns...constructive criticism is appreciated! Until next time. :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Emmet's Special Party and Performance**

* * *

Unikitty was excited. No…excited wasn't quite the word for it. It wasn't quite strong enough. Joyful? No…_ecstatic_. She was _ecstatic_ that after five _long_ arduous years, she would at last be able to start rebuilding her long, lost home of Cloud Cuckoo Land. She wasn't alone either – her good friends and fellow Master Builders were along for the ride, fetching colorful bricks to place here and there, following her directions and input. Queen Watevra Wa'Nabi and Sweet Mayhem were also helping out, along with their subjects – Unikitty had promised them that her kingdom was a place that was welcome towards everyone, no matter how strange or different – and they knew that their people would fit right in Unikitty's domain.

Lucy had come rushing to their building site as they were constructing the rainbow bridge that would lead the way to Unikitty's kingdom. It would likely take many days, if not months before completion, but the bridge was the first promising sign that things were right back on track to how they should be.

"Wyldstyle! It's so good to see you!" Unikitty greeted her cheerfully, and leapt down her overseeing perch to meet up with her. Benny, Metal Beard, and Batman stopped working when they saw her as well. They hadn't seen Lucy a lot recently, which made sense; Lucy and Emmet were off doing their own thing and helping the reconstruction process in the heart of Syspocalypsestar, whilst the others were busy expanding their kingdoms and realms, building them back up to how they were before the war – and making them even better than before, too!

"Good to see you, too, guys," Lucy returned. "Listen…I know you're all really, _really_ busy with your projects…but I need to ask you for a favor. To help me out with something."

"What is it, Wyldstyle?" Benny asked, while showing off his brand-new jetpack that he had been using to help with the harder-to-reach places for the higher levels.

"Yarrgh, we've not be seeing you as much. What ye and young Emmet be up to nowadays?" Metal Beard growled, hankering his claw in his newest body that Queen Watevra Wa'Nabi had presented to him as a gift.

"Emmet and I have been helping out in the main town area, building the new homes for everyone after the Systarans came to join us," Lucy explained to them. "And it's been going very well so far; we've gotten through a few blocks, and the people moving in seem to really be liking it."

"That's great!" Unikitty cheered. She moved aside to show Lucy their own progress. "We've been busy here too – the new Cloud Cuckoo Land is right on track!"

"Wow! It looks amazing so far, Unikitty!" Lucy complimented.

"Uhh…I don't know," a deep, gruff voice muttered from the side. "Could use a bit more black. Especially on the tower. And the doors. And…windows. Actually, everything could use a bit more black." Batman entered the conversation, sucking the joy that Lucy had previously felt when she first came to meet them.

"Looks like even marriage can't cut the Dark Knight out of his brooding place," Lucy muttered to him. _Seriously, how were we ever a thing together…?_ She asked herself with shock and annoyance.

"Oh, not to worry, Wyldstyle," Queen Watevra slid in between the two, coaxing Batman to relax. "Babe was just trying to imprint his own style, so that ya'll can appreciate it, too." She turned to her husband. "Baby, I'm _touched_ that you think of your friends that way. But don't forget, _you_ get the decorating say-so back at the _palace_."

Batman's eyes raised in anticipatory excitement. "…The throne room, too?"

"The throne room, too, baby. Darken it to your heart's content..._after_ we finish helping Unikitty here first." She blew a kiss at her Dark Knight.

That was enough to finish him, and invigorate him at the same time. He ran back to project at hand. "More rainbow bricks coming up, Unikitty!" he called, with more gusto in his voice than before.

"Whoa-_oh_…I guess marriage really did change him after all," Lucy exclaimed in a surprised tone.

"Mm-hm. It'll take him a bit, but Bats and I are really looking forward to spending our honeymoon together, after we're done helping here at Cloud Cuckoo Land."

"Oh…that's right! You never did finish the ceremony the entire way, did you?"

"Yeah…no thanks to Emmet," Batman called from his current vantage point. His voice was pointed, and Lucy knew it was directed at her. He still hadn't forgotten almost losing his Queen back when Ourmamageddon was happening, and it seemed to Lucy that he wasn't quite ready to forgive the unknowing construction worker that had caused for it to happen.

"Hey, no – that wasn't Emmet's fault!" she snapped back at him.

"Oh yeah? I don't remember _Banarnar_ being the one to smash the temple from the top, causing us all to be separated and sent into dark stasis. Nuh-uh! Nope!"

"…It wasn't his fault," Lucy repeated, in a quieter tone. "He didn't know what he was doing then. And I'm sure if he were here, he would apologize. He thought that he was saving everyone from being brainwashed and that everything was a trap."

"Ha. Someone didn't get the memo," Batman spat out.

"Babe, please," Queen Watevra moved in between the two before her husband could lash out again. "That was in the past. Now, I know Emmet must be remorseful for what he did, and I think we can work with him to let bygones be bygones. It's what our marriage is all about – why not give him a chance to make it up to us, by letting _us_ reach out to _him_ first?" She batted her eyes at him, hoping her soothing voice and their mutual affection would be enough to pacify Batman into following through with her idea.

"…Ugggghhhh. _Ffffffiiiiiiiinnnne_," Batman finally snarled, releasing much tension. He ran turned his back to them all and began hammering away at his current project with his various Bat-tools, deliberately making as much noise as possible to drown the voices of the others.

Queen Watevra Wa'Nabi chuckled and put a tentacle/hand (Lucy wasn't really sure which) on her shoulder. "Give him a bit of time, Wyldstyle. Bats is the type that tends to whole grudges…it's who he is, after all."

Lucy nodded. She didn't have to elaborate; being Batman's girlfriend at one time had allowed her to see the Dark Knight in his various levels of personality and emotion…which were on a different plane of childishness from Emmet's overall. She hadn't been able to help him move on, but Queen Watevra Wa'Nabi could.

A thought suddenly entered Lucy's mind. "Oh! Your Majesty!" She knew she had to tell her what was on her mind before she forgot again. "It's about what happened at your wedding."

"Did something happen?"

"…Actually, there's something you need to know. But I need to tell you privately. It's very important."

"Yarrgh! Can it not be said in front of yon friends?" Metal Beard asked, irritated by the secrecy.

"Yeah! What can be said in front of the Queen can be said in front of us…right?" Benny also inquired.

"I'm sorry, guys, but this is just going to be between the two of us for now. You'll find out yourselves soon enough."

With that, Lucy pulled the Queen away to a private corner, whispering secretly, while her friends watched from a distance, confused by being left out of something seemingly important.

* * *

It wasn't until after her friends had completed their marks for the day before Lucy divulged what she had in mind to help cheer Emmet up and show their appreciation for him.

"It's got to be subtle enough so that he doesn't catch on right away, but _not_ so obvious so that it's not a surprise. Any ideas?"

Benny tapped his foot and his eyes wandered upward, clearly in deep thought. Unikitty bobbed her head side to side, humming and sighing as she too brainstormed ideas that would give life to Lucy's idea. Sweet Mayhem looked lost – out of them all, she knew Emmet the least and wasn't sure in what way she could be of any help.

"If ye scally-wags were a sorry sort!" Their thinking was ceased by Metal Beard's outburst after a good long, awkward silence. "Master Builders and Defenders of all, and ye even can't think of an idea for a _party_?"

"Well, what did you have in mind, _Davy Jones_?" Batman snapped back at him.

"Yarrgh, I will choose to ignore yon insult and say that the obvious solution is one we pirates have done to entertain ourselves over and over again for eons." Raised eyebrows and another awkward silence. "_A_ _treasure hunt_!" Metal Beard finally snapped, thinking it were the most obvious thing of all time.

A quiet murmuring of voices slowly reacted:

"Oh…_yeah_."

"That makes sense. Why didn't we think of that?"

"A treasure hunt would be different than all of the other parties we've had here so far."

Metal Beard grinned, proud of having come up with an original and awesome idea.

"…But what kind of treasure could we put for Emmet to find?" Unikitty asked.

Lucy pondered…that was a good question. It had to be something special…to show Emmet that _he_ was special. To _them_. That he mattered.

Sweet Mayhem finally cleared her throat. "You know…when someone's throwing a party just for me, I like hearing from everyone something that they like about me. That makes me feel good, and better about myself. It shows that I have really good friends that look out and care about me."

"Sweetie, that is a _great_ idea!" Queen Watevra exclaimed. "We can make one-of-a-kind-friendship-letters for Emmet! And add things that we think he would like from us or that remind us of him!"

Lucy smiled. "I really like that idea, Sweet Mayhem," she complimented. Sweet Mayhem blushed – underneath the bravado she had shown in their battles, she really was just a sweet girl that wanted everyone to be happy and get along.

"So now that we have the idea for the treasure…how do we set up the hunt?" Benny asked. "Do we just want a map?"

"Yeah, a really, _really_ complicated map. With lots of arrows and obstacles in the way..." Batman tried to get in edgewise.

"Any other ideas?" Lucy asked. Not that an obstacle treasure hunt didn't sound fun, but she wanted this time to get to their quarry to be more intimate, especially after all their years of building themselves to be ready for any obstacle. A more laid-back puzzle was what she had in mind.

"How about riddles?" Unikitty suggested. "They can be creative but tricky…you'd have to use your wits to solve them and move along to the next point."

"Yarrrgh!" Metal Beard roared in approval. "We can each create our own riddle and puzzle to go along with it. _That_ will be the obstacle!"

"Maybe we could even make them rhyme!" Benny chimed in.

"I've got a good one already cooked up! Ooh, let's get started!" Unkitty squealed.

"Yeah, we probably should…I, uh, told Emmet the party would be tomorrow," she rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "So…it's kind of a rush-job."

"Then we don't have time to lose!" Benny yelled, leading the charge. He signaled the others to follow him into one of the other rooms for their brainstorming and creation to begin. It would be a long evening, and it would probably take all night for the others to get it ready, but if they pulled everything off right, Emmet would be ending that day feeling the love they really did have for him. That was Lucy's intention, anyways.

* * *

"Wow…Lucy, everything looks amazing!"

"Yup…all part of our brilliant plan. Now the people of Syspocalypsestar can come together for the first time for a _real_ get-together."

Lucy and Emmet walked along the path of the new park in the city the next day; to the right and left of each of them were various booths and canopies filled with people eating, selling, and laughing.

Emmet was under the impression that the party was a way for everyone to bond with each other, which he was all for after the last five years of struggle and strife.

Lucy, however, knew that the real reason for the celebration was meant for her Special Best Friend…he just didn't know it yet, and she didn't want to ruin the surprise for him yet.

_Let him soak everything in_, she thought. Her plan was to lead Emmet to get some snacks to eat together, play a few of the games set up (and hopefully win prizes from a few of them), then move on to the special treasure hunt/puzzle game that she and her friends had set up for them. Once they solved the riddles and followed the map, Emmet would find his treasure…and then, Lucy would reveal to him the real purpose behind setting up the entire thing. She would give him a toast that the whole town would be listening to and watching. They would all cheer for him and continue partying until everyone was quite tired and ready to call it a day.

Lucy was adamant that everything would happen exactly like the way she planned it to be. Sure, the townsfolk didn't know that this was all in celebration of a particular person, even if that person _was_ 'The Special'…that no one could seem to remember.

Lucy shook her head. It didn't matter what other people thought, in the end. As long as she could make sure that Emmet _felt_ special by the end of it all, it would have all been worth it. She was by his side now to see to that.

"Oh! Oh, oh, Lucy! They have one of those ring tosses!" Emmet suddenly brought her back from being deep in thought. He pulled her closer to the booth. It was a typical ring toss, some of them closer than others, where the object was to throw the rings one after another on the targets in order to get a prize. "Let's give it a try," Emmet said.

"Okay," Lucy agreed half-heartedly. _Hopefully this won't take too long…I don't know how long everyone can be waiting for us_.

Emmet offered the operator of the booth a token and took a hold of five rings. "If I get them all, what would you like, Lucy?"

Up above were different stuffed animals and other prizes for the taking. "Oh, um…it really doesn't matter, Emmet," Lucy replied bashfully. "I'm fine."

"…Okay, but if you had to choose _one_, though?"

"It's…whatever you like, Emmet."

Emmet grinned, and turned around, ready to start showing off his ring-throwing talent. "Watch this – I used to be a _pro_ back in the day!"

_When was_ that_?_ Lucy thought incredulously. No doubt he was over- exaggerating. Still, Emmet was sweetly trying to show off to try to make her proud of him; she couldn't fault him for that, or even for trying. She grinned, signaling to him that she was interested in his at least trying to win her a prize.

The first ring was tossed – a miss. It tapped the target by the side, but it fell to the floor regardless. Undeterred, Emmet sucked in a deep breath and tensed his body, leaning forward a little bit – Lucy was afraid after a few seconds that he would pass out, he was trying so hard. Another miss…and another…one by one, the rings fell to the floor. At last, all of them were gone.

Emmet stared ahead, stunned for a moment. Then he sighed and turned around to face Lucy, grinning sheepishly. "Sorry about that Lucy; I guess I won't able to get you that prize after all."

He started to head off to continue their walk when Lucy grabbed him by the shoulder. "Wait." He turned around to see her grab a token for the booth. "Why don't _I_ give it a try this time?" Emmet grinned and nodded. He couldn't wait to see Lucy's amazing throwing skills, which she had demonstrated to him time and time again.

Lucy exhaled deeply, setting herself up to relax and concentrate on her targets. Slowly but deliberately, she aimed and tossed each ring; one by one they met their target, sliding gracefully on each one. At last, the rings were gone, and the targets no longer empty. The operator congratulated her. "Well done!" he said. He pointed his cane above at the various stuffed animals. "You deserve a prize – please, tell all your friends to stop by our booth!"

Lucy turned to Emmet. "Which one do you want?"

Emmet eyed the prizes then back at Lucy. "Which one do _you_ want?"

"Emmet, I'm asking _you_."

"…I was going to try to win you that lion up there." He pointed at the stuffed lion with the wiry mane. "I think it fits you."

The lion sure was nice…but Lucy wasn't particular to any prize. Really, though, any of these prizes would suit well with Emmet. That puppy…that bear…that dolphin…

She could imagine his disappointment, though, if she ignored his wishes and gave him the prize she earned anyways. That would spit upon the effort he was trying to make to impress her…and the last thing she wanted to do right now was embarrass him.

She grinned after an awkward silence. "The lion it is, then," she said softly.

* * *

The pair of Special Best Friends soon stopped by a concession stand for some corn dogs, popcorn, and lemonade. They watched as Banarnar from Queen Watevra Wa'Nabi's court tried to perform his latest stand up routine…until he kept tripping over his banana peel.

Everyone laughed, despite his efforts. He just couldn't keep standing and do what he had planned to do. After the initial burst of humor however, Emmet stopped laughing, listening to the roar of the audience members around him. He stopped and looked at Banarnar – he looked incredibly frustrated that he couldn't get this one simple thing right.

Emmet felt bad for him in that moment, and felt ashamed for thinking it was funny in the first place. He was trying to do what he wanted to in front of all his friends…wasn't that enough? The others certainly didn't see it that way. They just saw someone who kept messing up…who couldn't be taken seriously.

Emmet knew how that felt like.

Without any second thoughts, Emmet hopped over from where the audience was to come closer to Banarnar. "Emmet! What are you doing?!" Lucy whispered, shocked by his sudden impulse to run, wondering what he was doing now.

For once, Emmet ignored her.

"Hey…it's Banarnar, right?" Emmet called out.

Banarnar looked up at the construction worker from the ground. "Oh…it's _you_…" he looked perplexed for a moment. "Eric…?" he tried.

"Emmet," he corrected.

"…Right. That guy that crashed the Queen's wedding party."

Emmet flinched, hurt by the sudden accusation. An accusation that was true, and all too recent. "That was…I wasn't…" he whispered, almost inaudibly.

"What?"

"I didn't know what I was doing then. Before." Emmet inhaled a deep breath and was silent for a moment, trying to will the memory of Ourmamageddon away. "…I'm sorry," he finally squeaked out.

"You're _sorry_? _Sorry's_ not going to help me fix my act!"

Emmet perked up. "Your act?"

"I'm a _performer_. These legs weren't just made for walking!" Banarnar struggled to stand back on his feet; Emmet helped support him so he wouldn't trip over himself again. "Thanks…it's these _peels_!" he screeched. "Sometimes I just wish I wasn't a banana. A _slippery_ banana. I'll never get to perform…not after they're all laughing at me like that." He gave a deep sigh. "Even the Queen laughs at me sometimes…" he muttered.

"Well…can I help?"

"What do you mean by help? What can you do?"

"…Well, you said your peels are the problem, right? Why don't I help you by holding on to them while you perform?"

Banarnar grimaced. "That would look kind of silly…"

"Isn't the whole point of your act to _be_ silly?" Emmet grabbed one of the peels that Banarnar had been tripping over earlier. "See, if I hold them like this, that'll give you enough room and movement to work with, so you won't slip and fall."

"You're pulling me down though."

"I'll just match your movements as you move. Think of me as like your helper…your assistant!"

"Assistant, hm?" Banarnar fell silent, contemplating Emmet's idea. "…It could work."

"We could give it a try. Together." Emmet took his hand out for Banarnar to clasp.

"No hands," he returned, shifting his feet uncomfortably. "That was part of the problem.

"Oh…right."

Banarnar sighed. "Well…okay. Let's give it a shot. They're already laughing, so it can't get worse than it already has."

"That's the spirit!"

"Just follow my movements, and let's see how this turns out."

Emmet watched Banarnar give him subtle signals as he stood to try again. "Ladies and gentlemen!" he began. "I hope you enjoyed the previews…now let the show _really_ begin!"

Lucy watched from afar as Emmet diffused the humiliating situation into something resembling an actual performance. Banarnar sang and danced on his long, lanky legs, whilst Emmet supported him by holding his peels so that he would not trip and slip over them. He waited and watched to move along with Banarnar's rhythm, gliding back and forth so that it looked like he was accompanying him instead of just trying to hold him steady. What it ended up looking like was Emmet waving and shifting back and forth as Banarnar danced, though that did very little to slow the giant banana down. For the first time in his long career, Banarnar was actually making a respectable performance, and his audience was taking notice. Polite claps and cheers were sung as each act concluded, until the show finally ran its course and the finale came.

Banarnar faced them with a bow. "Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for taking the time to watch our show." He gestured as best as he could to Emmet. "I want to give a special thank you to this…um…" he leaned forward. "What was your name again?" he whispered quickly.

""Emmet."

"This 'Emmet!'"

"Just Emmet."

"'Just Emmet!'"

"…Emmet's fine," the construction worker grinned patiently, knowing Banarnar was trying to show him some appreciation.

"Well, thank you again Emmet, for making this show a one of a kind!" With that, Banarnar bowed graciously and stepped forward towards his audience…landing on his face after stepping on his peel.

With a shrug, Emmet left to return to Lucy's side. She greeted him with a warm smile. "Wow, Emmet…I'm impressed! But I didn't think you would go to all of that trouble."

"I felt like I had to. He didn't look happy, everyone laughing at him." His smile faltered a bit. "I…kind of understood how he felt."

"…Like he wasn't being taken seriously?" Lucy offered softly.

Emmet nodded.

Lucy shook her head and wore a jubilant smile. "…Well, that's all in the past now! Don't worry, Emmet, I'm sure now that things are finally different, people will recognize you as a really _special_ guy. You know, if they haven't already."

"You think so?"

"Didn't you see the way you were working with Banarnar? You were helping him fulfill his dream, to be appreciated. I think the others noticed that, Emmet. And it's thanks to you that they won't leave him alone now!" She laughed as she looked back, watching Banarnar being picked up by the crowd and cheered, finally being celebrated by his new adoring fans.

"I'm glad I was able to help," Emmet finally said, a satisfied smile on his face.

"You were a _big_ help," Lucy replied. She grabbed his hand. It was getting late now – if they were going to pull off this treasure hunt thing, now was the time to do it. "Come on – we've got one more thing I want to try before we call it a day!"

"Lead the way!" Emmet exclaimed, following his Special Best Friend, completely oblivious to the surprise she had in store for him.

* * *

A/N: The next chapter will have to do with the treasure hunt! Also, when/if Emmet finds the treasure...will he react the way Lucy hopes he does? Lots of fluff for these initial chapters, but once this party is over...things are going to get a little bit crazy. ;) Hope you guys read, review, and enjoy this chapter - constructive feedback and thoughts are always appreciated!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: The Best Scavenger Hunt – EVER! (Part 1)**

They were getting closer to the edge of the festivities. Lucy noticed that things were becoming a bit quieter over in this area. This was good – although the activity was grand in scale, it was meant to be private. Just for Emmet.

"Where are we going, Lucy?" Emmet asked after a brief silence. He was curious why she was so eager in pulling in farther away from the crowds and all of the other events.

"I heard there's something _special_ planned back here," she explained, out of breath. "I wanted to check it out and see if we could give it a try. Ah, here we are!"

Within sight, she spotted an enclosed dome, hidden by flora and vines. Her friends had done a very good job of keeping it hidden from curious eyes– now they could truly experience Emmet's surprise together, for the first time.

"All we have to do is enter, and we should be able to know where to go from there," Lucy explained to Emmet.

"But…what exactly _is_ this place? What are we doing?"

"You mean you don't know? It's a scavenger hunt."

Emmet's eyes widened, much to Lucy's delight. "_A scavenger hunt?_" he repeated.

"Yup. We'll be searching for clues to be able to access the next area. We have to use our brains if we want to make it to the end…_and reach the treasure_." Emmet's mouth widened with awe at the prospect at what could be waiting for them to take at the end. Lucy stopped to look at him straight in the eye, a confident gaze plastered on her face. "You think you got what it takes…_partner_?" She held out a hand, signaling to Emmet that she was waiting for him to take this next step together with her.

Emmet returned her confident demeanor. "I've got what it takes, _partner_." He clasped her hand, matching Lucy's confidence. "Let's get in there and get us some treasure!"

_Oh Emmet…I _really_ hope that this is worth all the trouble. If this will help, even just a little_. Lucy brushed aside her insecure thoughts and opened the door to the dome with her Special Best Friend, preparing to meet any challenge up ahead.

The dome was dark; aside from a few lights here and there, Lucy and Emmet were standing in virtual blindness together. The silence was eerie, adding to the growing feeling of unease as the two friends were unsure just what to expect.

Within the blink of an eye, the lights suddenly flashed on, causing Lucy and Emmet to wince in pain and surprise. Their eyes soon adjusted, but they soon jumped at the sound of a booming voice.

**"_GREETINGS CONTESTANTS! WELCOME TO __SYSPOCALYPSESTAR'S FIRST ANNUAL EXTRAORDINARY SCAVENGER HUNT!_"** Canned applause echoed in the chamber. Lucy strained to listen carefully to the voice that was speaking – she was certain it sounded quite familiar to her, but she couldn't place who it was. **"_THOSE WHO PARTICIPATE IN THIS EXCITING EVENT WILL BE TASKED TO UNDERGO FOUR CHALLENGES, USING ALL THEIR WITS AND SKILLS! DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES?!_"**

_Well, too late to back out now_… Lucy thought.

"Yes!" Emmet responded, hoping the announcer voice would hear him and be impressed by his resolve. Lucy smiled at him; it was nice seeing him engaged in the activity as he was.

**"_TO COMPLETE THE CHALLENGE, CONTESTANTS WILL BE GIVEN A RIDDLE TO READ AND DECIPHER! THE CLUES THAT LEAD TO THE ANSWER ARE LOCATED IN EACH RESPECTIVE AREA. CONTESTANTS ARE ENCOURAGED TO WORK TOGETHER TO FIND THE ITEM THAT MATCHES THE ANSWER, WHICH WILL UNLOCK THE DOOR TO THE NEXT AREA AND ITS RESPECTIVE CLUE! THE FINAL DOOR WILL REVEAL THE WAY TO THE TREASURE – WINNER TAKES ALL!_"**

"Well, that sounds easy enough," Emmet told Lucy, cheerfully.

**"_ONE MORE IMPORTANT NOTICE!_"** The voice boomed back on. **"_CONTESTANTS WILL ONLY HAVE A LIMITED NUMBER OF TIME TO SOLVE EACH PUZZLE! FAILURE TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN THE FAILURE OF THE CHALLENGE…AND THE CONTESTANTS WILL BE LOCKED IN INDEFINITELY!_"**

"_WHAT?!_" Emmet and Lucy screamed simultaneously, frozen in horror by this new piece of information.

**"_GOOD LUCK, CONTESTANTS!_"**

_Guys…what are you doing?!_ Lucy screeched in her head. _This is _NOT_ what we planned out at all! _

Her heart suddenly skipped a beat when she realized what happened. _Batman_… It was Batman, she was sure about it. _He must have thought we were making it too easy for Emmet…so he just _had_ to add a little bit of pressure to it. Just to spice things up_.

She sighed. Oh well…it was nothing to worry about. Time limit or no, she and Emmet had the wits and gumption to solve each puzzle and reach the end, and she would succeed in her secret mission to help Emmet feel appreciated again. If that was worth all of this trouble…

"Well…there's no looking back," she said, regaining her composure. "Ready?"

Emmet paused before offering her a small smile "…When I'm with you, always," he replied, softly.

They clamped hands together and pushed forward the door into the first arena.

* * *

The area they entered was had a myriad of bright colors plastered on its four walls, giving it an atmosphere that was bright and welcoming. Glow-in-the-dark stars were planted on the ceiling, with models of planets and systems spread across, giving its visitors the feeling that they were gazing up at the night sky.

Lucy knew they didn't have much time to admire the workmanship her friends had built – they were on a time limit to solve the riddle, seek the correct object, and move on to the next room. "Any idea where we're supposed to look for first?" she asked Emmet. There was so much…_stuff_…for their eyes to unpack, it was difficult to know where they had to begin first.

"Lucy, in the corner there," Emmet caught her attention. "I think I see a note."

A note it was, indeed. A parchment planted on a small, stool table, with lovely penmanship delicately lined and sparkled. _Sparkled_. Lucy had a better idea now who had been behind the construction of this room.

_This has Unikitty written all over it…_

Emmet picked up the note and narrowed his eyes, scanning the fancy, cursive writing.

"What's it say, Em?" Lucy asked. They had better get started if they wanted to utilize all of the time that they had.

Emmet held his hand to his mouth and coughed several times, making a loud attempt to clear his throat. _Or at least look like he was taking this entire thing as seriously as possible_, Lucy thought.

"It says:

**'_Glitter and shine make everything bright_**

**_Answer this riddle and get everything right!_**

**_You see this object in the sky,_**

**_Although looking at it directly may make you cry! What am I?'"_**

"Okay, well…not the most _original_ of ideas," Lucy muttered. To be fair, with everyone preparing everything in such short notice, it wasn't any wonder that the puzzles they crafted wouldn't be too incredibly difficult to figure out. _That's probably why they had the idea of adding in the time limit_, Lucy figured.

"So…do we just look around for what fits the riddle best? How do we solve it?" Emmet asked her.

"We could try going line by line, and break them down to see just what the whole thing boils down to?" Lucy suggested.

"That's a good idea, Lucy."

"Thanks. How much time did they say they'd give us?"

"Uh…I don't think they said. At least, I don't remember hearing a number…"

"They said we'd have a 'limited number of time,' I think. So, we've got to go through it quickly but carefully. What did the first line read, Em?"

"Uh…it said '_Glitter and shine make everything right_.'

"Okay…so we're supposed to find something that's bright, or supposed to be bright. What's next?"

"'_Answer this riddle and get everything right_…_You see this object in the sky, Although looking at it directly will make you cry_.'"

"So, we're looking for something bright and shiny, and it's in the sky…"

"And it makes you cry when you look at it…" Emmet furrowed his brow. "So…does it make you sad…or hurt you…?"

A light bulb went off in Lucy's head. "Emmet!" she called out. "It's the sun! We're looking for the sun!"

"The sun? Here?" Emmet looked puzzled. "How are we supposed to find the sun and use it to unlock the next section?"

"Well, I don't think they _literally_ mean we have to find the sun," Lucy explained. "Did you notice everything in this room from looking around? There are all kinds of models here."

"Kind of like a planetarium."

"Right. Somewhere here ought to be the sun. We find it, take it down, and show…whoever's running this thing that we have it so we can move on."

"Sounds good…only, where do we look first?"

Emmet had a good point – the room was small, but large enough to make looking for their prize quite the ordeal. There were numerous stars and models of planets and other representations of the star systems everywhere you could look…and no sign of a bright, yellow ball of burning gas.

"Um…Emmet, why don't you check out that section of the room there, and I'll look over here? We'll move up and down until we find it."

"Got it!"

Emmet and Lucy split down the middle of the room and began carefully investigating for the model of the sun they were hunting. Emmet came across Jupiter, Mars, and Saturn, whilst Lucy came across the Asteroid belt, Neptune, and Venus. A few moments of silence passed as the two friends scanned the walls and ceiling carefully, trying not to miss anything that seemed out of the ordinary. The sun wasn't going to be like anything else – it was bright, big, and gave a type of warmth compared to all of the other models – even if they were fake and made of soft material.

**"_A REMINDER FOR CONTESTANTS THAT THEY HAVE APPROXIMATELY TEN MINUTES LEFT TO SOLVE THE RIDDLE AND FIND THE KEY TO ENTER THE NEXT ROOM_."**

The booming voice startled Emmet and Lucy as it came out of nowhere. Lucy could feel herself slowly growing frustrated as she knew time was slipping away, when suddenly…

"Hey, Lucy?" Emmet's voice rang, casting Lucy out of the short stupor she had been in.

"Yeah, Emmet?"

"Is it just me…or is the sky _moving_?"

Lucy stopped where she was and looked up. Emmet was right – the planets were not where they had been originally when they had entered the room. Not only that, but she just now noticed that the lighting of the room was different too. _Oh, these guys are _good…Lucy thought, both out being impressed as well as frustrated.

"You're right, Emmet – the sky _is_ moving…because the planet we're on moves, so the sky looks like it's moving too. That's the idea they came up with for this room. We have to use that fact to our advantage, and figure out just where the sun is going to be coming from."

"So, the sun _isn't_ here then?"

"Well, not right _now_…it's like this room is supposed to show us how it is at night, right? So…I think we just have the wait for the sun to pop up, just like it does for us at dawn."

"That makes sense…but where we do we need to look for it when it comes out?"

"That's…a good point, actually. We don't have a lot of time left, so we really need to grab it the first chance that we can get so that we can move on, and we're not _stuck_ here. Let's think a moment." Lucy tapped her claw at her mouth, deep in thought.

Emmet was much more reflective over what he knew, and what he just heard. He wasn't as stressed or as intense as Lucy was in solving the puzzle and moving on. Time limit excluded, this was a very fun excursion for him, and another way to spend more time with his Special Best Friend. So, it only made sense for Emmet to come up with the solution, in the way that only Emmet could…

"You know…" he began quietly, gently bringing Lucy out of her mind again. "When…when you guys were always out on patrol, during the war I mean, I always liked to wake up with the sun. It was always there, on time, everyday. I knew just where it would shine first from even before I opened my eyes."

"Really?"

"Yeah…" He gave her a sheepish smile. "Kind of silly right?"

Lucy grinned. "Not silly at all. Do you think you know where we should look?"

"I think so…" Emmet approached the right side of the room and studied the wall. "The sun always rises in the east of the sky…wouldn't this be like the east?"

"I think you're right, Emmet! So the sun will rise from here, and then we snatch it before it gets too high."

**"_A REMINDER FOR CONTESTANTS THAT THEY HAVE FIVE MINUTES LEFT TO SOLVE THE CHALLENGE!_"**

"Okay, already! We _KNOW_!" Lucy shouted back at the voice. It was grating and irritating, when not loud and bombastic…like a certain pirate captain she knew…

"Lucy, look! It's coming!" Emmet called out. He was right – the wall itself was becoming brighter, a sign that the symbolic burning star was about to enter their view.

"Okay, first sign of it that comes up…grab it," Lucy ordered. "No matter what, we have to get that model off the wall and get it to exit door."

Emmet didn't need to be told twice. His hand was out and at the ready. What seemed like an eternity later proved to be fruitful as the model entered into view, rising up from what looked like an area behind the wall, meant to serve as the skyline. As soon as his eyes spotted it, he sprang into action, leaping on the wall and grasping his hands around the glowing sun model. With a few tight tugs (as the sun was continuing its ordained orbit), Emmet was successful in pulling it off entirely. Pieces of plastic sprayed off of him and bounced off to the floor, as a result, but Emmet had no time to react now. He leaped off of the wall and ran to the exit door, just as Lucy had told him too. They both knew they had just enough time to spare.

Emmet grinned and held up the sun model with both hands. "The answer is the sun!" he said triumphantly. Lucy beamed proudly at him. True, it had been a simple puzzle and simple enough to retrieve it…but that wasn't the point of this entire ordeal. The point was to help Emmet feel good…to help him feel like he was appreciated. These little riddles and exercises were great baby steps in getting there.

The door hissed open, a sign that they had passed the first challenge.

**"_CONGRATULATIONS, CONTESTANTS!_"** The booming voice roared again. **"_YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY PASSED THE FIRST TRIAL! YOU HAVE THREE MORE CHALLENGES BEFORE YOU! SUCCEED IN THESE AS WELL, AND THE TREASURE IS YOURS!_"**

"We did it!" Emmet cheered enthusiastically to Lucy.

"We're one step closer now. Ready for the next one?"

"You don't even have to ask," Emmet answered back, dashing on ahead to the second chamber, leaving Lucy a split second behind before she knew what even happened.

_Oh, you_… she thought playfully to yourself. _Just…don't get too full of yourself, Emmet_.

* * *

Some time passed as Emmet and Lucy moved to the next chamber. They were ready to face the next challenge, whatever it may be. This last puzzle wasn't as tricky as they had anticipated – would the others be just as simple?

Lucy was both uneasy and excited to see just how elaborate their friends had made this entire game, just for Emmet, after completing the first room. It wasn't obvious to him that they had been behind its construction and development – they had done an amazing job leaving their own unique signatures, yet remain anonymous. Lucy made a mental note to thank each of them once this was all over. Even Batman, even though she had twisted his arm into helping out.

The upcoming room was washed with a spectrum of blue colors, and shapes resembling sea creatures, both those under the ocean, and those that flew above it. It was almost overwhelming how many creatures there were in this room. They were strung around with string, but elaborately could move. Some could even move their tails, giving the illusion of them all swimming together under the ocean. Sounds of the ocean echoed quietly in the room, relaxing the two puzzle-solvers. It was obvious that their next clue had something to do with the ocean.

"Wow…" Emmet gasped in awe. Lucy couldn't help but smile sweetly at how easily impressed he could be, overwhelmed by the simple beauty of things. It was the biggest thing that he had kept true to himself during the war, while the others and herself embraced hardening themselves in order to survive in the new world they lived in. Or so they thought…

"Where's the next clue?" he asked, stepping into the room, gazing up and down. His inquisitive nature took over, and Lucy followed his lead, looking at different parts of the room.

"Wait…Em, I see something shining. In that corner over there!" She pointed to the edge of the room. A small glass bottle lay hidden behind some larger rocks, but not enough to obscure the shimmer it had.

Emmet picked up the bottle and examined it carefully; a piece of paper sat folded inside. He carefully banged on the bottom of the glass so that the paper fell closer to the entrance, then gingerly pulled it on. He opened the paper, and motioned for Lucy to come closer to see.

It read:

**"_Large and wide I be._**

**_My home is in the deep, blue sea_**

**_Listen to my gentle croon, _**

_**In the depths, I'll see you soon! What am I?"** _

"So…it sounds like it's something that sings. Or makes noises, at least," Lucy murmured.

"It also says it's large and wide…kind of like a boat!" Emmet added.

"Yes, but I think it's a sea creature…at least, from looking at what's around us." They peered around in awe again at the creative variety of sea life floated above and around them. If not for the time limit, Emmet felt that he would have enjoyed looking at the craftsmanship for each of the creatures up close. Time was not on their side right now, however.

"It says that 'in the depths, I'll see you soon'…what do you think _that_ means?" Emmet asked.

"In the depths…deep in the sea…" Lucy murmured. She looked around, scanning for anything that seemed off or different. The illusion the room gave was that they were surrounded by fish and sea creatures of all shapes and sizes…but nothing that was obviously located in the depths of the sea.

"Lucy, look at our feet!" Emmet suddenly called out. Lucy did as he asked, her eyes widening by what she saw. There were larger shapes (shadows, really), etched into the bottom of the floor. Lucy leaped on the side of the wall to try to get a higher perspective. The sounds changed where she was; a deep, gentle moaning sound rang near where she was perched. "A gentle croon…" she murmured.

"What do you see?" Emmet called up to her.

"It looks like…it's got to be…" She scanned the outline of the shape Emmet was standing in. The crooning sound continued to hum nearby. "…A whale!"

"A whale?"

"Yes! It lives in the depths of the ocean, it's large and wide, and it croons, which is what that sound it's making." Lucy leapt back down to join her friend.

"I think you're right, Lucy…but how do we show…whoever's in charge of this thing the answer?"

Lucy faltered. That was a good question. They couldn't pull off the imprint like they could from the sun in the first room…could they? "W-What do you think we should do?" she asked Emmet, in a quiet voice.

**"_CONTESTANTS ARE REMINDED THAT THEY HAVE A LIMITED AMOUNT OF TIME TO COMPLETE THIS CHALLENGE!"_ **The voice boomed suddenly, out of nowhere. Apparently, the watching party was getting a tad bit impatient that things were moving along as slowly as they were.

Emmet ignored the announcer voice, and looked back up where Lucy had leapt down from. "Did you see anything up there?"

"No, I just heard the whale sounds. Why?"

"…I'm going to go back up there and have a look." Immediately, Emmet started climbing up, struggling a bit here and there to reach the corner where Lucy had just been. He didn't have Lucy's acrobatic ease, but as a Master Builder, he did possess some power of movement now that had previously been inaccessible to him. It took a bit more time than Lucy, but eventually Emmet made it to the top. The crooning sounds were loud, poring into his eardrums.

_The louder something is_, Emmet thought to himself, _the closer it is to you_. It was this power of observation that he had developed and perfected as a construction worker. No level of detail had to be missed when following the instructions down to the letter. The detail that Lucy was missing, he realized, was that she was actually _closer_ to their key out of there than she realized. Emmet stepped closer and closer to the source of the sound until he finally spotted it: a small radio, large enough to hold in one hand, but powerful enough to broadcast its sound across most of the room. Grasping it, he retraced his steps until he joined Lucy back in the trace of the whale. He grinned and faced the door to the next entry, holding up the radio. "The answer to the riddle is a whale!" he called out, hoping that they had met the time limit, and that this would suffice as an appropriate answer.

It soon seemed that it did; the door rumbled and opened, allowing the two Master Builders access to the third chamber.

Lucy grinned proudly at Emmet. "Okay…_how_ did you know there was a radio up there?"

Emmet turned sheepish. "Well…the sound had to come from _somewhere_," he started to explain. "You seemed to hear them better from up there, which meant they weren't being broadcasted from somewhere else, but from in the room. You just had to go a bit further up, that's all."

"Wow, Em…I'm impressed!"

A slight blush washed over Emmet's face. "…Really?"

"Yeah! I mean, I don't think I wouldn't have thought of going further up, or that there was a radio up there."

"You would have. You're the smartest person I know."

Lucy's features softened. "Well, it's…it's nice of you to think so."

Emmet grabbed her hand. "I _know_ so. Come on, let's go to the next one. There's only two more, right?"

Lucy tightened his clasp. "Right…only two more." _And I hope you like it..._all_ of this_… she thought, as they stepped forward together and entered the next chamber.

* * *

A/N: Whoo! Next chapter's up! Guys, I am SO sorry about the long wait in-between - work has been a real slammer, and especially these next couple of weeks will be really busy for me...so, here's the next chapter before I'm swamped with that! Originally, I wanted to have all four challenges in this one chapter...and when I saw my page count number, I just decided to cut it in half. I'm not sure how many of you want to read THAT much at once (although it would be great if you did).

So...how did I do with the riddles? They're not the best thing I could come up with, but I think they could have been a whole lot worse as well. My excuse is that Finn and Bianca are the ones role-playing this together and that they came up with the riddles to use in this adventure.

Lucy's more tense when it comes to hoping everything goes without a hitch, whilst Emmet is more laid-back and go-with-the-flow kind of guy. I think this also transfers to the way they problem-solve too. But they compliment each other well. :)

Part two of this Scavenger hunt will wrap this up, and set the scene that will cause the story to take a dark turn...at least for Emmet. ;)

Feedback and comments are appreciated - thank you so much for reading so far!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: The Best Scavenger Hunt – EVER! (Part 2)**

* * *

The third chamber was dark, almost impossible to navigate through, if not for the sparkling stars that twinkled up above and all around. At least, that's what Emmet thought that's what they were – he was almost hesitant to step forward too many steps for fear of bumping into objects.

"Can you see anything?" he whispered to Lucy. He wasn't even sure whether they would even be able to find the clue in all of this darkness, and with the clock ticking away…

Finally, after a few minutes of adjusting his eyes, he could at last see what lay before them.

The third room in the challenge was a simple bedroom, not unlike Emmet's own. Only, this bedroom was large in area space, with clutter on the floor and furniture. It was also dark – in fact, the only source of light came from a small nightlight next to the bed.

Lucy and Emmet walked closer to the source of light. On the bed lay a note – the next clue for the puzzle. Emmet picked it up and read:

'**_Musical notes I speak, love is what I bring._**

**_I nestle you in warmth, and can carry you to the moon up north._**

**_With me comes sleep that is mild, but dreams that are wild._**

**_What am I?_**'

"So, we're supposed to be listening to some music?" Lucy asked.

Emmet turned around to face the room ahead of them. He was silent for a few moments, listening carefully. "There's no music playing. It's quiet."

"No music?"

"Yeah…so, how are we supposed to find the music when there isn't any playing?"

"We need to spread out and look around the room. We'll find something that's supposed to play some music. Like a player, or some headphones…"

"Or a canary."

Lucy blinked twice. "A…what now, Emmet?"

"A canary."

"Why…a canary?" Lucy couldn't fathom why Emmet, as well as he was doing so far in this challenge, would have the idea that a bird was the answer to their riddle.

"Well, think about what the riddle says: 'Musical notes I speak, love is what I bring.' Birds sing, and everybody loves to listen to them. So, for them, it's like they're spreading their love for everyone when they sing."

Lucy couldn't help but smile at Emmet's explanation. _Oh Emmet…sometimes being simple brings out the best of you. _She didn't say this to him aloud, however. Instead, she said, "You might be on to something. See if you can find something like a bird hanging around nearby. I'll look elsewhere to see what I can find."

Emmet nodded, and immediately they split from the light, until they could only see the shadows of each other.

Emmet was grasping on one side of the room, and using his arms to feel his way around, so as to not bump into anything. His hands felt something hard and long, like woodplanks. _I guess this is a bookshelf_. He tapped it twice. _Really sturdy_, he thought to himself. _Strong enough to support some weight_…

He latched his hands on the edge and began to climb, carefully feeling every nook and cranny of the shelves. There were objects of different types organized on the shelves. Most seemed to be books, but at other points, Emmet would feel something like ornaments used to decorate the shelves, or small toys…

As he continued to climb up and around the shelves, the gears turned in his head. He kept pondering over the meaning of the riddle, and what it had to do with somebody's bedroom. He reached the end of the shelves, and realized that it was a dead-end, unless he wanted to continue feeling his way around the shelves, where there was nothing in particular that was interesting. Just some old toys and…

He touched something small and, what felt to him, fragile. He wrapped his hand around it to feel the details – it felt like porcelain, with decorative edges along its round body. His eyes widened and he grabbed the object in his free hand. What if he had already come across the key to their exit?

Lucy found that looking for clues in the dark was a lot harder than it looked. She was almost embarrassed by her difficulty – she had been a spy, a rebel, a warrior. Slinking in the shadows looking for clues had been a specialty of hers. Why was she having such a hard time now coming across anything that was particularly useful?

**"**_**CONTESTANTS ARE REMINDED THAT THEY HAVE A LIMITED AMOUNT OF TIME TO COMPLETE THE CHALLENGE TO SUCCESSFULLY MOVE ON AHEAD!**_**"**

The announcer voice rang in the room suddenly, startling Lucy. She could feel the pit of her stomach growing annoyed with each given reminder. _I know, guys, I KNOW_, she snarled in her mind. _I don't need you to keep giving me the reminder!_

She froze in her tracks when she heard something faint playing behind her. She knew it wasn't a voice, but rather gentle chimes playing…

_Music_…

She stopped what she was doing and headed to the opposite end of the room to find the source of the music. To her surprise (and delight), she found the outline of Emmet in the shadows, holding what looked to be a small device.

"Lucy, I found it!" he exclaimed.

"That's great, Emmet! …What is it?"

Through the shadows, Lucy could see Emmet opening the porcelain box up, and a whimsical figure stood in the middle, turning along while the musical chimes played. "It's a music box."

"A music box?"

"Yeah, like the riddle said."

"That's great! Emmet, show the music box towards the exit for…whoever's watching us, and see if we got it."

Emmet stepped forward and held the box high, hoping the judges (or the people in charge of the challenge, whoever they were) would accept this as the correct answer. "It's a music box!"

Silence. No movement was made. Lucy and Emmet were confused – weren't they correct? Wasn't the answer a music box?

…Or were the people who were supposed to be running this show just not paying attention right now?

Emmet turned to Lucy, confused. "It's not a music box, is it?" he asked quietly. There was a little bit of fear etched on his features now; if this first guess wasn't the correct one, who was to say the second try wouldn't work…or the third? They were also running out of time…they needed to find the correct answer, or risk being trapped in this isolating room, for perhaps always.

**"_CONTESTANTS ARE REMINDED THAT THEY HAVE APPROXIMATELY FIVE MINUTES LEFT UNTIL THEY ARE DISQUALIFIED FROM THE HUNT!_"** The booming voice caused them to jump, but what frightened them more was the limited amount of time remaining for them. _Five minutes?!_

"Emmet, read the riddle again – just one more time!"

"Musical notes I speak, love is what I bring.

I nestle you in warmth, and can carry you to the moon up north.

With me comes sleep that is mild, but dreams that are wild.

What am I?"

Lucy tapped her foot and sighed loudly. "Okay…I think we're on the right track here. We just need to figure out if and how the music box plays into this."

"Lucy, the riddle says something about sleep."

"Okay?"

"We're in a bedroom. With a nightlight." Emmet grinned, as an idea flashed in his brain. "What if there's one more thing you'd need to help yourself get to sleep?"

"…Okay, I'm not following. What else would you need to be able to sleep?"

Emmet wound the key to the box, and began to let it play. It was a gentle and soothing melody, and one that seemed incredibly familiar for the both of them. "You need a lullaby."

Lucy's eyes widened. "Lullaby! That's it!" she cried. She grabbed Emmet's hand and turned him to face their exit again. "The answer is a lullaby!" she announced.

This time, the answer was received and accepted. The door opened, leading the way to the fourth, and final room. Emmet placed the music box back on the shelf, then turned to find Lucy shaking her head at him, smiling. "How did you know?" she asked him quietly. "I couldn't even figure it out."

Emmet gestured towards the room around them. "I think whoever made this wanted players to use the room around them to solve the riddles, not just come up with the easiest and fastest solutions. That's not what a good construction worker does. A good construction worker has to examine his work from every angle, and sees how it fits into the environment around it. Otherwise, it just wouldn't _look_ right, you know?" He blushed when he saw Lucy was staring for quite a while at him. "…What?" he asked, chuckling sheepishly.

"Nothing, it's just…you're really bright, Emmet. And I don't think you get enough credit from that." _Especially from me_, she added to herself.

"Huh…thanks, Lucy."

"No problem. So…ready for the final one?"

"I'm ready when you are."

"Then let's go!"

The two Master Builders ran through the exit, to make their way to the last area.

* * *

The final room Lucy and Emmet entered was built to resemble a museum of sorts; objects were placed strategically to create an organized and relaxed atmosphere. The Master Builders curiously walked around the different displays, admiring how lovingly it had been put together.

The displays showcased various methods of transportation: trains, airplanes, spaceships…a lot of different types of spaceships, actually.

Lucy was beginning to have an idea of who came up with the idea for this final room.

"Lucy, here's the last riddle," Emmet called over to her. He had found a note placed on top of a desk, obviously meant to resemble a curator's desk.

The note read:

'_**Loud I roar when I soar,**_

_**Fast I zoom, leaving a great gray fume,**_

_**Earth is far behind, leaving your future blind.**_

_**What am I?**_'

"Loud I roar when I soar…it doesn't sound like a train to me," Lucy murmured.

"Fast I zoom, leaving a great gray fume…" Emmet read aloud the next line.

"Earth is far behind, leaving your future blind…"

"What am I?"

It didn't take long for Lucy and Emmet to look at one another and smile.

"This one is a lot easier than the last one," Emmet said.

"It sure is," Lucy agreed. "It's obviously a rocket."

"Spaceship," Emmet corrected her. It was obvious he was also thinking of Benny.

"Right, a spaceship…so, do we pick any one of them? I mean, there are a lot of different rock-er, spaceships here on display."

"It doesn't hurt to try."

The pair walked to the nearest spaceship display and carefully opened the display case. Emmet carefully picked up the rocket and raised it high, so that the ones watching them could see him clearly. "The answer to the last riddle is a spaceship…specifically, this one."

There was silence in reply…for a moment. Suddenly, Emmet could hear recorded cheers and whistles echo inside the room, and the ceiling opened to reveal paper confetti trickling down on top of him and Lucy.

_**"CONGRATULATIONS! YOU'VE SUCCESSFULLY SOLVED EACH AND EVERY PUZZLE, AND HAVE WON THE HUNT! NOW, COME AND CLAIM YOUR TREASURE!"**_

Emmet dropped the spaceship, caring less whether it landed safely; that didn't matter to him now. He ran to Lucy and clasped her hands excitedly. "Lucy…we did it! We did it! We got to the treasure!"

"We did!" Lucy cheered alongside him, beaming deep with pride. "You were amazing, Emmet! All those puzzles…I've gotta admit, even I got stumped a couple of times."

"Oh no, Lucy, don't be silly. You were definitely awesome out there. I wouldn't have been able to reach some of those places, but you did."

Lucy smiled her thanks to him. "Ready to go see the treasure?"

"Yes. I. Am." He held his arm out to her (like any good gentleman would), and together they strolled through the final door.

* * *

There were no piles of gold to be seen, no treasure chests with gigantic locks on them that needed prying open. Instead, Emmet and Lucy walked into a large, open area that was darkly lit. In the center of the room, where the light shown best, was a single treasure box, simple in design, and small enough to be picked up easily by both hands.

Emmet was confused. "We…we did make it out through the exit, right?"

"Uh-huh," Lucy confirmed.

"Soooooo….um…where's the treasure?"

"_You're_ the treasure, you lovable orange ball'a bricks!" a voice rang out.

The lights suddenly flashed on in intensity, forcing Emmet to look away for a few brief moments. Once his eyes adjusted, he opened them to see a large white banner.

It read: _**"CONGRATULATIONS EMMET! THE BEST SPECIAL, FRIEND, AND TREASURE HUNTER EVER!"**_ The writing grew smaller as it spread to the edges, but Emmet could still read the message loud and clear.

It still took him several moments to realize that the banner was meant for _him_.

Unikitty, Batman, Metal Beard, Benny, and Sweet Mayhem appeared next to the banner.

"Surprise!" Unikitty called out. "Congratulations, Emmet! You guys did great!"

Emmet struggled to find his voice; he was having a hard time comprehending just what was going on.

"So, Emmet, do _you_ want to open the treasure, or do you want _us_ to do it?" Benny asked.

"What…treasure?" Emmet's voice finally returned to him. He walked up to the chest to join his friends, Lucy close behind him. "You mean, you were waiting for us this whole time?"

"Waiting…and _watching_," Unikitty replied, winking at him. "We designed this place just for you, Emmet, to show how much we appreciate you."

"…Me?"

"Yeah. It was Wyldstyle's idea."

Emmet turned to Lucy, confusion still written on his face. "You set this all up for me?" he asked quietly.

Lucy blushed and held her hands behind her back, shyly. "…Surprise?"

"Well…yeah…I am a bit surprised."

"A bit? _HARR-ARR_!" Metal Beard roared. "If me ship were struck by a polka-dotted giant squid, I'd no more look surprised than ye do right at this moment."

Sweet Mayhem lifted the treasure box. "Here…this is for you. It's _your_ treasure box."

Emmet took the box and shook it carefully. It didn't sound like any valuable metals or jewels were locked up inside, like he had originally thought. "What's inside?" he asked.

"Ugh, it's a _surprise_, Brickowski…" Batman sighed loudly. "You have to open it up and see, otherwise it's _not_ a surprise."

Emmet unlocked the hatch and opened the box. Inside were letters, envelopes, all addressed to him. "There's…there's a lot in here," he finally spoke, in a hushed voice.

Unikitty curled up next to him, preparing to give him a warm embrace. "We wanted to make you feel better. Wyldstyle said you'd been feeling kind of down lately, so she came up with this idea to find this treasure…but we wanted to make it fun, so we came up with these riddles and challenges to try to make it more challenging along the way."

"Yeah, and the carnival thing was planned right at the last minute, but everyone in town seemed to enjoy the diversion," Sweet Mayhem added. "It created the best cover for the treasure hunt to take place."

Lucy placed her hand on top of Emmet's. "You don't have to read these right now, if you don't want to. You can save it for later, if you want."

Emmet smiled. He wiped his eyes; it was only now apparent to him that they'd gotten a little watery. "I'll read these later…if you don't mind guys."

"It's no problem, Emmet," Lucy answered soothingly. "We just wanted you to remember that…we're here for you. All of us."

Emmet closed the lid of the treasure box. "Thanks you guys…you're all awesome, and I don't know what to say. I just hope it wasn't trouble putting this all together for me."

"Don't be silly!" Unikitty purred happily. "It was no trouble at all!"

"Well, mateys…" Metal Beard announced. "I don't want to break up the mood, but…there still be a carnival happening, if ye want to partake in those activities?"

Lucy turned to Emmet. "Emmet?"

Emmet grinned. "Yeah! Oh, yeah! Just…let me take this back to the house…" he waved the treasure box. "…And I'll meet you guys there."

"Sounds good, Emmet," Lucy smiled. "We'll see you soon!"

* * *

Emmet rushed out the corridor and began to make his way to his Dream House, on top of the hill. It would be quite the run from the festivities, especially with the treasure box, but he felt as light as a feather, and energized by what his friends had done for him. He couldn't wait to read the letters and spend more time with them.

He suddenly felt too light, at least his head did. He began to slow down. Maybe all of this running after all of those challenges was getting to him. Too much excitement did that for some people sometimes.

Now his arms felt heavy – this chest weighed a ton! How many letters were in here, anyways? He limply dropped it to the ground. As soon as he stood up though, he felt a searing pain in his head. He grabbed his head with both hands, but that did nothing to mitigate it. His body dropped to the floor, and he tumbled back and forth in agony. It felt as though his brain were being split apart…

_Emmet_…

_My dear, sweet Emmet_…

_You have a purpose_…

_You were lost_…

_Guide him, Emmet_…

_Guide_…

The voice (a familiar voice, one that he hadn't heard in over five years) grew louder and louder in his brain. He gasped and cried, and continued rolling around.

Slowly, his body relaxed as he lost feeling in his limbs…

_Just like in his nightmares_…

The pain was disappearing, but so was his consciousness…

Soon, all Emmet could see was black, and he knew no more.

* * *

A/N: _Duhn, duhn, duuuhhhnn!_ Sorry, this chapter is late! But I'm determined to see this story through to the end! Although, interesting cliffhanger I'm leaving poor Emmet in, huh? What do you think is going on with him? Well, we'll have to wait until the next chapter to see. Thanks for all of you who are leaving me reviews and feedback - I really appreciate it! I hope this story is going in an interesting direction...now we've just got to add Rex to this mix in the next chapter. ;) Thanks again, everyone!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Lost in the Shadows**

* * *

Emmet Brickowski slowly opened his eyes, ready to awaken to the beginning of a brand new day. At least, that's what he was hoping for. That's what he _had_ been hoping for the last…what seemed like an eternity for him. He couldn't remember much anymore. He couldn't remember how long it had been since he flew out of his tiny spaceship-house and was flung into Reality. He had slid onto the strange and terrifying planet Undar of the Dryar System. And there he had stayed.

His eyes, newly opened, saw the familiar sights of the strange wood flooring collecting dust all around him. It was quiet for now – once in a while, the Dryar System howled such ferocious and loud winds that hurt Emmet's ears. He would have gladly covered them up…if he wasn't frozen in place on the floor, with no way to move.

This day could not end quickly enough for him, and it had only just started. He sighed, although nothing audible came out from his mouth – it was as if someone had super-glued his mouth shut. He couldn't move…he couldn't scream, although it wasn't for a lack of trying. Worst of all, he was all alone. He could see images and flashes of light as what appeared to be his friends were dancing and partying, all in the hands of these giant flesh monsters.

If Emmet could shudder now, he would. He had been in their hands once before, he remembered. Or at least, that's what he _thought_ he remembered. Time had become so monotonous and long for him that it was starting to affect his long-term memory. Slowly, his memories of home were vanishing, and his desperate attempts to escape from this awful place grew stronger and stronger in his heart.

He did remember that he had been frightened, at the very beginning. He was afraid of the circumstances that he found himself in – sure, he wasn't dead, there was that. But it was almost as if he _were_ dead, in a sense. This didn't become clear to him until he saw the flesh creatures playing with his friends. He could overhear what adventures they were having – parties, dancing, celebrations…Emmet's heart panged. He had wanted that, too, for so long. _Those are my favorite things to do…with all of them_, he thought to himself. And they were doing all of it without him. It was as if he didn't exist for them anymore. His heart and core tightened as it slowly began to dawn on him that there was no place for him in that world they were a part of. Not anymore. All he could do now was lie where he was, and watch. It was pure torture, knowing that there was no purpose for his existence anymore. There was no place for him among his friends…for Lucy, especially. She looked so happy, he noticed. Was she really happiest without him? After a long while, he reluctantly admitted that she was.

He was once called The Special…a man named Emmet Brickowski, a construction worker – someone who always joyfully followed the rules, who wanted to be friends with everyone, and unite everyone.

Now, on this desolate planet, all alone…he wasn't sure what he was anymore. He wasn't sure _who_ he was anymore.

Scratches were heard far behind him; if he could still move, he would shudder. He had no idea what lay behind him, deep in the dark. He only had the world in front of him to look over and stare at…for all eternity. Now that the scratches were gradually becoming louder and closer, Emmet couldn't help but wonder what was making those sounds, and if it had any interest in him.

As quickly as they had begun, however, the noises ceased. Emmet slowly felt his insides relax; he had no idea he had tensed up so much by those noises. In a way, he was excited for the new sensation – it was refreshing and new from the deep-pitted sadness and anger that had gradually been building up inside of him for who knew how long.

Suddenly, before he had a chance to redirect his thoughts back on his current circumstances, a giant brown thing pounced on his side. Claws dug into Emmet's sides, scratching him. Emmet thought he was too petrified to react, when in reality he still couldn't move or speak due to his present condition. That didn't stop him from looking up at the creature, as it plopped Emmet onto his back from his side. It was large –at least twice as large as he was. It had beady black eyes that only accentuated its terrifying countenance to Emmet.

_This is it_… Emmet thought desperately. _It's going to eat me…or worse!_

It didn't cross his mind that a large rat had no interest in consuming a plastic construction worker. It still didn't help when the rat's large mouth opened and it started to wrap its jaws around Emmet's neck – the thinnest part of his body.

It was only stopped when a grappling hook came and struck the rat across the face, scaring it off of Emmet. The rat scrambled back deeper in the shadows into the hole in the wall, until no trace of it remained in view.

Emmet now wished he was back on his side to see who had come to his rescue. Could it be…? The one he had been hoping for, wishing to see…?

…Could it be her?

_Lucy? _

His question was answered when a navy boot was planted on Emmet's side, and a helmeted figure reached over him. He looked like some kind of strange astronaut.

_Maybe he was sent by Benny?_ Emmet thought. He could feel his heart sink somewhat from disappointment. He was hoping that one of his friends - or what he _thought_ were his friends – would come and rescue him themselves.

Emmet had daydreamed the pictured moment many times for many, many days. He had imagined a group effort lead by Lucy creating a stampede, blocking obstacles from their path, in order to reach him. The journey would have been perilous – what other reason could there have been for the journey to take as long as it had? Lucy would have reached him, confidence in her eyes, but comfort and reassurance in her hand as she reached out to pull Emmet up. They would have then make their way back to Apocalypseburg, and everyone would have resumed their old lives again.

Those dreams were dashed when he saw Lucy and the others befriending the Systarans and their queen – the queen that had captured them in the _first_ place! He watched them dance and party with one another – Emmet was almost certain that they had to be brainwashed. Batman? Party? Never. Neither would Lucy's hair be shiny and blue – it just wasn't _her_.

He felt helpless watching them under this state, but more than that, he felt upset…which turned into loneliness. And that loneliness gradually began churning into a deep-seated anger.

Now that anger had dissipated into shock and surprise, as he gazed up at his rescuer.

"Who are you?" he wanted to ask. Until he found that he couldn't – his body and face were still paralyzed; an unfortunate side effect of being stuck inside Reality.

The stranger spoke first. "We need to get you out of here," a clear, male voice told him. If he was affected by Reality's pull, he didn't show any sign of it. The strange astronaut grabbed Emmet and helped pull him up. The astronaut kept his grappling hook up at his side, ready to use it at any point again. He walked backwards, supporting Emmet up as he did so.

Even if Emmet could speak again at this point, he found that he was at a loss for words. He was finally getting rescued! How long had it been? Had the stranger been sent by his friends, or did he somehow spot him hidden in the dark and felt the need to retrieve him? Did he know the way back to Apocalypseburg?

Emmet felt a pang in his heart again. …Did he even _want_ to go back again, at this point? Emmet let his thoughts stir and become even more muddled as the stranger continued to pull him further out of Undar. When they finally reached the light, the astronaut showed incredible dexterity, hopping quickly from one area of the room to another within moments, carefully grasping Emmet all the while. Neither of them noticed the black, beady pair of eyes watching them from nearby.

* * *

The rat was a coward, but it was no quitter. It had been tasked with a job to do, and it was committed to following it through to completion.

It had found the lone figure, abandoned and helpless, just as it was told he would be. He had been alone for so long that he was beginning to collect several layers of dust. _Poor thing_, the rat thought…or it would have thought, if it could think. It didn't have time to think – thinking belonged to the being that owned him. The being that wanted this construction worker for his own devices, just like he had wanted the rat. The rat had a role to play.

So did Emmet Brickowski.

Once the mysterious savior and Emmet were out of the rat's sight, it turned around and headed back through the hole in the wall. Deep in the wall and into the house it ran and crawled. Back to its master, to relay the latest news. Then it would be told what to do next. One thing was obvious to the rat for sure, though. Its master needed Emmet Brickowski. For what reason, only the Master knew. The rat was simply the courier.

Once it had reached its destination, the rat relaxed its posture. It was ready to relay its information, but only when its Master deemed he was ready. They were inside a bowl-shaped area; what little light penetrated revealed a small figure gazing up at the opposite wall.

The Master took his time to turn to face the rat. There was no rush – no hurry. Everything would take its correct course, if only if his plan was not rushed. Rushing caused others to make mistakes, to be sloppy. He would be careful not to do so, if his plan was to see the light of day.

"So? What news?" The Master finally asked his servant, his voice deep and gravelly, as if it were seldom used.

The rat quickly approached its master, twitching its twisted whiskers and squeaking rapidly, using a language only The Master and itself were able to understand.

"So…he managed to escape from Undar after all," The Master mused quietly. "Well done. Continue keeping tabs on them. If and when you see an opportunity that Brickowski is alone, or a moment of weakness between the two, capture him and bring him to me. Nevermind about the other one – do with him what you wish."

The rat shook its head to give a semblance of a nod, then hurried out as quickly as it had come in.

Chortling laughter broke through the silence, almost stunning the Master…if he was able to become stunned, that is. Latched onto the wall was a skeleton, shaking in its chains as it continued howling with boisterous laughter. "Can't stand the quiet anymore, can'tcha Sherriff? If I knew you were _this_ lonely, I'd have really cranked up the volume! You only had to ask!"

The Master turned and stepped closer to the skeleton. Although he had long been his prisoner, they had also been each other's only company for a good long while. It was because of this that the skeleton knew which buttons he could press to really irritate the Master. It was also because of this that the Master felt inclined to reveal his plan to him, if only a small portion.

He smiled at his prisoner. "How long has it been since I've trapped you here, Ribsy? Two days? Two months? Two _years_?"

The skeleton stopped laughing at once. He and the Master both knew that they had both lost their sense of time, lost in the shadows for as long as they had been. For the person the Master tauntingly called Ribsy (for in truth, the skeleton had long forgotten his original given name), it was almost more than he could take. Hanging trapped on the wall deep in the shadows…he began laughing. And he hadn't stopped laughing since, if only to keep himself going a little while longer.

"That construction worker is like us…cast aside, adrift. It's up to me to rescue him, and to show him the truth. Show him the potential of what he could be." The Master smiled. It was a terrifying smile, one that lacked sincerity and warmth. "With his help, you won't be alone anymore. And with _my_ help, he'll realize that his place is here. And he'll be happy. We'll _all_ be happy."

For the first time in a very long time, Ribsy was speechless. He knew the Master was deranged. It was clear just by looking at him – every piece of him was mismatched. Nothing about him made sense, from his appearance, to how his mind worked. He was fractured…broken. For some reason that continued to confound Ribsy, the Master clearly thought Emmet was broken, just like he was.

* * *

Once the strange astronaut deemed they were safe from any nearby danger, he set Emmet down gently. He took his helmet off for the first time, allowing the stiff Emmet to take a good look at him. His features were sharp and rugged (_in comparison to Emmet's soft, babyish face_). His hair was dark and messy (_in comparison to Emmet's light and well-groomed crown_). His clothes were edgy with dark colors (_in comparison to Emmet's bright orange construction suit_).

"I think we're as safe as we're gonna get," the mysterious stranger said, speaking for the both of them than just Emmet.

Emmet was still helpless in his current state – although he was aware of his surroundings and what was happening in front of him, his body was still paralyzed. The stranger noticed this and quickly got to work.

"Don't worry," he told him gently. "I'll get you up and feeling like yourself in no time." He wasted no time grabbing Emmet's right arm and beginning to rub it. He rubbed faster and faster, the friction creating warmth for Emmet's frozen body. "This'll get the life juice in ya to start pumping again," the stranger explained. "Start moving anything as soon as you feel the heat growing." Emmet listened and waited as the stranger continued to rub his arms and then his legs. He went back and forth many times, rubbing quickly before moving on to the next appendage. After what seemed like an eternity for Emmet, he began feeling sensations in his fingers and toes. He tried moving them as the astronaut continued rubbing. Their efforts were eventually rewarded as Emmet slowly (_but finally!_) could move his arms and legs again.

"I…I…." He whispered. It had been so long since he last spoke. Back when he was in his little spaceship house that had crashed into the Stair Gate.

The stranger hushed him, urging him to relax. "You're been through a lot, being on Undar. Save your strength. You'll need it when we keep on moving."

Emmet nodded and slowly let his body relax. The stranger then looked around before turning back to him. "I'm going to build us a fire. Be okay until I get back?" Emmet could only nod again, still too stunned and exhausted to speak. The stranger then leaped away in just a couple of quick bounds. Emmet finally slipped into unconsciousness, entering a peaceful slumber for the first time since he had been trapped on Undar.

The rat couldn't believe its luck – it had Emmet Brickowski in its sights, just hours after first losing him. It crawled closer behind him, quietly but quickly, so that it wouldn't be spotted.

A sudden blow struck its face, stopping it in its path. The rat shook off the pain and looked at its attacker. The astronaut flew above it, its jetpack powered on, allowing him the freedom to breeze past the rat, and around. "Stay away!" The astronaut hissed.

The rat studied the mysterious rescuer – although it was not skilled in observing facial expressions, it was clear that the spaceman was furious.

"You leave him alone!" The stranger shouted, shooting his blaster at the rat. It evaded the shots, and quickly climbed some ledges in order to get a closer range of its target. The rat's mission was clear to it, at this point: Disable the annoying spaceman, retrieve Emmet Brickowski, and bring him to its Master.

An attempted jump was stunted when the astronaut punched the rat in the back midway, causing the rat to stumble down. Seeing this as an opportunity for another escape, he raced back where he left Emmet, quickly picked him up, and used his jetpack for a quick getaway, hoping he would be able to reach safety and be out of sight before the rat was able to study their movements again.

Emmet, for his part, twitched his hand – the sensations in his body were getting stronger the further along they moved.

Hours later, in a dark hiding spot, Emmet sat up for the first time by himself in what seemed like a lifetime for him. His rescuer had built a fire, to keep them both safe and warm. The stranger was rapidly checking their surroundings, fierce determination written on his face. "We can't stay here for too long. Or anywhere." He stood up and paced. "That _thing_ will be after us. We need to keep moving, as soon as you're able to get some rest."

He winced suddenly, his face contorted in pain. Emmet gasped – had he been injured in his bout with the creature? "Are you okay?" he whispered. It felt strange being able to talk again – it was coarse and rough; it would take some time for him to be able to sound like himself again.

"I'm…I'm fi-" He inhaled sharply, his features tightening future. He grabbed both sides of his head and started breathing quickly. Emmet felt his own heart racing; there was no one near enough to help them both. Suddenly, the rapid breathing stopped and the stranger opened his eyes wide. He dropped his hands by his side, and his body noticeably relaxed.

He turned to face Emmet with a sheepish smile on his face. "Sorry about that. That's the second time that's happened so far."

"The second?"

The astronaut sat down by the fire, next to Emmet. "Yeah. It…kind of comes out of nowhere. I get this feeling like a giant hammer is hitting the front of my skull, and the wind is whistling through my ears." He chuckled. "It's pure agony."

"…I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It's how I was able to find you."

Emmet cocked his head sideways, confused.

"See, there's someone that talks to me then. Or…that's what it feels like. I dunno. It's like I hear a voice." He chuckled nervously. "Now I _really_ sound like a crack-pot. But a voice really did tell me to come find you. And there you were, like it said you would be. It told me to come and rescue you."

"Rescue me?" Emmet repeated. He could feel his heart sink a bit – although he was relieved he had been rescued, he was hoping that his friends had had a part in that rescue. "You mean…you weren't sent by Lucy and the others?"

"…Lucy?" The stranger put on a perplexed look on his face. A few moments of silence passed before he spoke again. "…It…it _sounds_ familiar. That name. But no, I don't think I was sent by Lucy."

"…Oh."

"But, hey, that doesn't mean Lucy _isn't_ looking for you, Emmet!"

"Wait…how do you know my name?" Emmet asked.

"The voice told me to 'find Emmet.' 'Protect Emmet.' Somehow, I knew where to find you, and somehow I knew that Emmet was you."

"'Somehow?'" Emmet repeated.

"Here's the _real_ kicker." The spaceman leaned closer to Emmet. "I don't remember anything past this morning."

"WHAT?"

"Yup. It's true. Everything from my life from before today – it's a total blank." He knocked his skull with his knuckles. "But that doesn't mean we don't have anything to go on. I was sent on a mission to rescue you – I know that much. Maybe I know Lucy too. Maybe she's the one that sent me out to find you, and I just don't remember."

Emmet didn't answer; he wasn't sure how accurate this testimony was that this stranger was offering him.

The spaceman reached out his hand. "I'm Rex, by the way. Rex Dangervest – Galaxy-defending, archeologist, raptor-training, and cowboy-extraordinaire!"

Emmet grasped Rex's hand. "I'm Emmet. Emmet Brickowski..." He paused for a moment, trying to think of something to match up Rex's incredible record. "Emmet Brickowski, the um…Special. I'm The Special."

"Nice to meet you, The Special. And Emmet, you _look_ like someone pretty special."

"Really?" Emmet grinned hopefully – his first smile in what was likely forever for him.

"Sure!" Rex laid on his side. "Time to crash now, Special. First sign of daylight, we're out of here to find Lucy and your other friends. We can't stay too long in one place – we're being hunted. Just take it easy, Brickowski. I'll look after you."

"Right. Thanks, Rex." Emmet yawned loudly and laid down as well. "G'Night!"

* * *

It was night by the time the festival activities finally wound down. As Unikitty and the others began dismantling the sets and rides, Lucy said she would head down to the Dream House to check on Emmet. They hadn't seen him since he left to take his treasure back up there.

_He must have decided to rest up_, she thought. _I don't blame him. All of this might have been too much for one guy. I wonder if he liked what we put in the chest? _

Her thoughts stopped, though, when she saw a shadow in front of her. She had to walk closer to realize it was a body. And it wasn't just anyone that had just passed out – it was Emmet.

She chuckled, thinking that perhaps he had fallen asleep on his way back to the house. The treasure chest lay next to him, unopened.

She prodded his shoulder in an attempt to wake him. "Emmet? It's me, Lucy. Come on, time to get up. You'll get sick if you keep sleeping on the ground like that."

No movement.

She prodded him again, a little harder this time. "Em? Come on, let's go home." Emmet fell limp again, and she suddenly felt a cold chill run down her back. She finally noticed that he wasn't snoring, or breathing much in any regard. She leaned down next to him, placing her ear on his chest. His pulse was present, but very, very faint.

Lucy was petrified. She picked up his shoulders and shook him hard, his head rocking back in forth. She screamed his name in his face. No reaction. He was in a deep sleep, like a coma. _Like death, almost_.

She shakily rose up and lifted Emmet. She wasn't sure where to take him, but she knew he needed help. The only thing she could think of doing was to carry him back to the house and summon their friends to let them know what happened. The treasure chest lay behind, abandoned and forgotten.

* * *

A/N: The next chapter is finally up, whoo! I know it's been over a month since the last chapter was released - I think to see it through to its completion, I'll have to settle to posting the next chapters monthly. I start work again this week and have a lot of other obligations to take care of, but I'm still determined to finish this story!

Speaking of this latest chapter, we've finally gotten a look at our antagonist(s)! What do you guys think of the Master, Ribsy, and the rat? What kind of plans do you think the Master has for Emmet? And Rex is here too...although he seems a bit nicer here than in the film. Hmm...

Also, poor Lucy finding Emmet like that - do you think everything Emmet is going through is a dream? Can Lucy and the others wake Emmet up?

I'd love to hear your thoughts, and remember, constructive criticism is appreciated. Thanks so much for your feedback so far, guys, I really appreciate it! :)


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